(Minghui.org) A 60-year-old woman in Changchun City, Jilin Province, was recently sentenced to 3.5 years for her faith in Falun Gong, a spiritual discipline that has been persecuted by the Chinese communist regime since 1999.
Ms. Yan Lijuan was arrested at home on November 19, 2021. Over ten of her Falun Gong books, a photo of Falun Gong’s founder, and a computer were confiscated. After ten days in the Weizigou Lockup, she was transferred to the Changchun City No.4 Detention Center. Due to her weak physical condition, she was denied admission. The police released her on bail on December 3.
Officers broke into Ms. Yan’s home at 6 a.m. on October 24, 2022, and arrested her. Their excuse was that her one-year bail condition had expired and that she had been indicted by the Chaoyang District Procuratorate. She was first held in the Changchun City No.4 Detention Center and then transferred to the Weizigou Lockup on November 7. Her family called the police and the procuratorate repeatedly to inquire about her case, but their calls often went unanswered.
When someone at the procuratorate finally answered the family’s call in February 2023, he said that they hadn’t received her case yet, although the police indicated otherwise. The family called again two days later, and the prosecutor said they had already indicted her and moved her case to the Chaoyang District Court.
The family then called the court and asked about their lawyer’s visit to Ms. Yan. A court staff member said they had appointed a lawyer for her. The family told them that they wouldn’t accept a court-appointed lawyer, who is usually ordered to plead guilty for Falun Gong practitioners, and that they had hired a lawyer on their own. The court directed them to the local justice bureau, insisting that the lawyer would have to register with the bureau and provide the required information before being allowed to represent Ms. Yan.
Before the lawyer could finish the paperwork, the judge, Wang Yanan, sentenced Ms. Yan to 3.5 years, without informing the family of the trial. When the family asked the judge why she did not inform them, Wang claimed that she’d posted the information on the court’s bulletin board and it was their own fault if they did not see it.
Ms. Yan used to suffer from a severe heart condition and a pelvic cyst. Sometimes she even had trouble holding chopsticks. After taking up Falun Gong in 1998, she regained her health, gave up her short temper, and became considerate.
Perpetrators’ contact information:
Yuan Xinjie (袁鑫杰), police officer: +86-431-84948597Lyu Jinming (吕金明), prosecutor: +86-431-85887059Wang Yanan (王亚楠), judge: +86-431-88559352
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